Allen and Unwin 2015. ISBN 9781760112479
(Age: Upper Primary and early Secondary) Well recommended. This book
was first published in 2003. As the centenary of Gallipoli is here
in 2015 the factual entries are still very poignant and relevant
when reading about WW1 and Gallipoli. The author says he 'set out to
explore the events of Gallipoli in 1915. I have tried to find the
facts, but it is not always possible to separate fact from legend'
(Author's Note in the 2003 Edition). This book, with a new striking
cover is full of amazing, intimate facts of the soldiers who landed
at Anzac Cove. Amongst the many fascinating details is one where
Simpson of the Donkey fame, took a possum in his shirt on board ship
from Australia. Anyone who knows about possums will understand how
sharp their claws are! How did he manage? And to know that Major
General William Throsby Bridges insisted that the Australians fight
as a single force. 'Had he not, Australian troops would have been
shared out among British forces. There would have been no ANZACS and
no Gallipoli legends'. p.12-13. The details of individual soldiers'
letters and comments, gives the reader an insight into the
horrendous conditions under which the Australians fought Carlyon's
detailed descriptions of the Commanding Officers, both English and
Australian, gives personal reflections. The black and white
photographs are sensitive and varied, again giving the reader an
opportunity to visually see the soldiers and the terrain. As Carlyon
says 'Sometimes we bathe Gallipoli in a romantic glow. We talk about
the Anzac spirit and mateship and good humour. The Australians at
Gallipoli had all these qualities. But they also had dysentery and
toothaches to think about. They stank of dirt and death'. (p 168).
It's a very sobering book but well worth reading.
Sue Nosworthy
World War 11 Tales by Terry Deary
Bloomsbury, 2015 The Bike Escape. ISBN 9781472916242 The Apple Spy. ISBN: 9781472916211
(Age: 8-10) Recommended. The Bike Escape - London 1939.
Young Harry is a rough and tumble kind of boy, he's an opportunist
whose London life is about to drastically change as is the world
around him. It is 1939 and the government decides that hundreds of
children were to be evacuated from the city, sent in their best
clothes with a label and gas mask hanging around their neck, to an
uncertain future.
School life is tough for the boy; corporal punishment is given out
for stealing one piece of chalk. When the local policeman and
Harry's teacher visit his house, he believes he's off to prison,
however he has to be evacuated as well.
Terry Deary captures the atmosphere, their everyday life and the
reality of the city and country kids trying to fit in to rural
living. Will Harry be successful in escaping from Miss Pim's house
and find his way sixty miles back to London on a borrowed Land Army
girl's bike? The Apple Spy - Scotland 1940. Siblings Marie and Jamie Bruce
are bored: who wants to listen to the teacher reading the fairy tale
of Snow White, the evil queen and the poisoned apple? Luckily they
did! When they are sent home for being rude, Marie has a better plan
- why not catch the Edinburgh express train instead. Two strangers
are also on the platform asking directions from the station-master.
Jamie picks up on their German accents and water-soaked clothes.
He's an avid reader of the Wizard comic books that are filled with
secret agents and German spy stories. With Jamie's quick thinking
and Marie's quick summoning of the local Home Guard, the spies are
apprehended. Of course, there's a third German spy who jumps on
board, at the very last minute and Marie follows him. Jamie hops on
and runs through the carriages to find Marie. He saves his sister's
life, when he stops her from eating a poisoned apple from the spy's
suitcase.
Terry Deary's World War 11 Tales are drawn from real-life stories,
the junior novels bring to life the experiences of children living
at this time in Great Britain's history. James de la Rue's ink
sketches add humour to the stories, especially the illustrations of the teachers!
Rhyllis Bignell
iF: A mind-bending new way of looking at big ideas and numbers by David J Smith
Ill. by Steve Adams. New Frontier Publishing, 2015. ISBN
9781925059267
Smith has taken a whole host of little known or discussed statistics
and scaled them down to more manageable time frames, numbers or
items. As stated in the blurb, 'iF the sun were the size of a
grapefruit, Earth would be the size of a grain of salt. Even the
largest planet, Jupiter, would only be as big as a small pea . . .
Space, time, inventions, resources, humanity and more - iF scales
down big concepts and invites readers to see the world in a
mind-bending new way.'
Containing stylised illustrations with brightly coloured
backgrounds, the text is presented in different boxes on each double
paged spread yet does not comprise of overwhelming amounts of print.
Events of the last 3,000 years are presented on a single page of a
calendar, inventions on a measuring tape etc. In this way, the
reader has a visual representation of various events which can be
far more easily interpreted by the young reader.
Smith has previously released If the World were a village, a
title which has been heavily used by teachers in Maths, English,
Science and the old SOSE curriculum or inquiry units. This title
will undoubtedly become equally as popular for the same reasons. The
double paged spread at the back of the book contains information for
teachers and parents, including how to use scales, maps and
timelines. Children, particularly boys looking for non-fiction
titles are likely to devour the information included in this title.
Jo Schenkel
Paper planes by Steve Worland
Puffin Books, 2015. ISBN 9780143308744
(Age: Upper Primary and early Secondary students) Well recommended.
It's interesting to read a book of quality after a film has been
made, but this is a story of commitment and obsession. Dylan lives
in outback Western Australia and because of a chance suggestion from
a student teacher he becomes enchanted with paper planes. Dylan's
commitment takes him to Sydney and then Tokyo. Along the way, he
copes with his depressed Father who is unable to deal with his
wife's death and an inspirational, feisty grandfather who, with his
lady friends from the Waleup Nursing Home bring scones, lamingtons
and cupcakes, making the extra money to send Dylan to the World
Championships in Tokyo. Dylan and Kevin, (the school bully) become
friends and Kevin is Dylan's strongest supporter. Dylan's
determination wins him the chance to compete in Tokyo. Jason is his
main competitor. Jason's attitude is very self-confident and leaves
Dylan anxious. He becomes friends with Kimi, a champion in her own
right from Tokyo and his confidence gains strength.
It's an uplifting book. His love and persistence with his Father and
his tolerance of him is touching. Individuals play an important role
in the book giving Dylan the strength to grow and have confidence in
himself and his ability to pursue a great challenge, that of being
part of the World Junior Paper Plane Championships in Tokyo. It's
refreshing to see how a teacher and student- teacher can have such
an incredibly positive and enduring influence on, not just Dylan but
Kevin and no doubt the rest of the school. The Appendices are
fascinating: from Q&A with the Director, the film cast, Notes
from the Paper Pilots, Tips and Tricks, How to Fold a Paper Plane
and Things you might not know about Paper Planes. Lastly, the author
talks about how he wanted his daughter to see the movie and then
read the book. The film clips tell a visual story on their own.
Sue Nosworthy
Double dare you by Meredith Costain
Ill. by Danielle McDonald. Ella Diaries bk 1. Scholastic
Australia, 2015. ISBN 9781743628638
Highly recommended for girls from 7-9 years. Ella's Christmas gift
of a new diary causes some initial problems. How do you start a
diary? What do you record? Absolutely everything! Who can read it?
Only Ella of course. She is apprehensive about starting school, who
will be her Grade 5 teacher and will she be separated from her
friends?Tuesday's entry is filled with the highs and lows, Zoe her
best friend doesn't show up and mean girl Peach Parker has to sit in
the seat right next to Ella. Unfortunately, Miss Weiss their teacher
pairs up Peach and Ella to work on a project together. Peach, Prinny
and Jade take every opportunity to harass Ella in class and out in
the yard.
The first weeks in Grade 5 are full of ups and downs, Peach and her
friends show their true colours as they harass other students,
interrupt learning and bully their classmates. These girls involve
many of their classmates in an embarrassing game of Dare. Ella and
Zoe find themselves playing ball by themselves. When Ella stands up
to Peach and Jade, refusing to play a trick on classmate Cordelia,
the bullying stops.
The bold use of red in both the sketches and text makes the story
pop. Different text styles, placement of words, use of expressive
punctuation and poems are exciting features used to engage the
reader. Meredith Costain's Ella Diaries explore the real
issues girls face at school and home. Ella is definitely not a wimpy
kid, she's resourceful, caring and real.
Rhyllis Bignell
A curry for Murray by Kate Hunter
Ill. by Lucia Masciullo. UQP, 2015. ISBN 9780702253546
(Age: 5+) Recommended. Community, Food, Cooking, Neighbours. When next door neighbour, Murray announces that his wife has gone into hospital, Molly decides she will cook a curry for him. When he tells a neighbour about the lovely curry, Mrs Gregg with her bad cold asked Molly for a meal, and she cooks her some eggs. Next Sam Moloney comes with a tooth ache wanting some soft food, so Molly cooks him spinach macaroni. On it goes through the streets and wider community, until a prince rolls in with his helicopter, and Molly makes him savoury mince. Each plate of food rhymes with the person requesting the food, and several lines are repeated, making this a wonderful treat for readers. Not only do they learn about rhyme, but also repeated text, prediction and food names.
And the illustrations add to the fun. Each double page sets the scene of the person asking for food and the reason, while the next page shows the food that Molly cooks, with a picture of the ingredients and equipment needed to make up that dish. Masciullo wanted her paintings to look like the images in a food magazine, so spent a lot of time making them look appetising, and she succeeds. Children will want to cook the food shown and with the ingredients shown this will be an easy task at home or in the classroom. Masciullo's naive style gives the readers lots to look at one each page and the food shown will endear them even more to this charming story about neighbours, community and sharing.
Hunter developed this story when her neighbour's wife went into hospital and her daughter suggested making a 'curry for Murray'. From there she developed the idea with her family having fun making up the rhymes with various dishes, something which could be done in class as an extension after reading this book. Masciullo has also illustrated two of my favourite picture books, Sonya Hartnett's The boy and the toy, and Come down, cat.
Fran Knight
Jimmy's war : 1915 : do you dare? by Sherryl Clark
Do You Dare? series. Puffin, 2015. ISBN 9780143308027
(Age: 10+) Highly recommended. Themes: World War 1; Family Life;
School life; Australia 1915 - social life and conditions. This
historical fiction novel is based in the Melbourne suburb of
Yarraville during 1915. Life is tough for Jimmy's family, his father
died in a factory accident, his older brother Arthur is away at war
and his mother is ill. Life is tough, there's hardly enough money
for rent or food. When Jimmy loses his after school job delivering
groceries for old Mr. Brown, he's forced into making some tough
decisions - to run errands for the local bookie or find work at the
local railway goods yard. He's hounded by the local sergeant's
warning about his playing truant.
Things become serious for Jimmy, when his mother falls ill and he
needs to find a way of making money. The household changes when
Arthur a former football hero, returns home after being injured in
the fighting. Luckily they have helpful neighbours to support them.
Sheryll Clark's well-researched novel provides an insight into the
harsh realities of inner-city life, clothing, housing, food,
school-life, the difficulties faced by returning soldiers and their
families in 1915. This series places strong boy characters into the
reality of the social life and conditions faced during historically
significant times. Jimmy's War is a valuable addition to the
collection.
Rhyllis Bignell
Wild Wood by Posie Graeme-Evans
Atria Books, 2015. ISBN 9781476743615
(Age: 15 - Adult) Recommended for readers who enjoy time slip
stories. When Jesse Marley discovers that she is adopted she is
determined to go to the United Kingdom to find the place where she
was born and uncover the secrets surrounding her birth. In London in
the month before Prince Charles and Diana's wedding she is hit by a
motor bike and taken to hospital. Unable to speak she begins to draw
a castle she has never seen, a man in armour and faces of people she
doesn't know. Her neurologist Rory Brandon is intrigued as he
recognises the castle and together they travel to Hundredfield, a
mediaeval stronghold which had been held by the Norman Dieudonne
family.
The author juggles Jesse's struggles to find out what is happening
to her in 1981 with the story of Bayard Dieudonne, a medieval knight
in 1321. On his return to Hundredfield after fighting on the
Scottish borders, he discovers that his brother Godefroi has married
and is now ruling the land harshly, the people are homeless and
starving and his brother doesn't seem to care. The historical
background is vividly drawn and the period of the Middle Ages comes
to life as the reader is drawn into descriptions of the Lady of the
Forest who is supposed to appear when she is most needed and the
conflict between the Catholic faith of the Normans and the pagan
beliefs that many of the people from the countryside still have.
Bayard's story is a gripping one, written in the first person and in
the style of the language of the 14th century, and it is this that
really kept my interest alive, as I read on avidly to find out what
the connection was between Bayard, Jesse, Hundredfield and The Lady
of the Forest.
Readers who like historical fiction and the idea of the medieval
world impacting on the modern world will enjoy the descriptions of
the castle and its chapel, the harsh life of the peasants and
soldiers, the piety and superstition on the monks and the conflict
between Norman and Briton. The struggle that is required to keep
Hundredfield in the 20th century and the effort that Jesse has to
make to find out about her roots is also immersing. The author
brings Jesse's story and Bayard's to a satisfying conclusion while
managing to keep up the suspense about the connection between the
two.
I certainly will not hesitate to pick up other books by Posie
Graeme-Evans.
Pat Pledger
Macbeth a graphic novel adapted and illustrated by Gareth Hinds
Based on the play by William Shakespeare. Candlewick Press 2015.
ISBN 9780763678029
Any new publication which helps students engage with Shakespeare is
welcome, and this well- constructed and attractive graphic novel,
rather than simply condensing the story and adding pictures,
carefully preserves the essential aspects of the play. Sensitive to
the power of the language, speeches have been carefully abridged and
the removal of line breaks, scene and act breaks, whilst preserving
the Shakespearian language, lend fluency to the text. Legibility is
good with not too much text on the page while black text boxes are
used to indicate dark forces at work and asides. The graphic
elements are engaging, the characters are consistent and evolve;
Macbeth starts out strong and attractive and ends up haggard and a
bit mad. Macduff starts out as the thoughtful comrade, and at the
end when he kills Macbeth he is the epitome of a hardened warrior.
The images of him when he learns of the murder of his wife and
children reflect the heartbreak of his emotional journey. The whole
is supported by dramatic use of colour, atmospheric settings and
carefully researched, dramatic battle scenes. At the front of book
is a helpful map of England and Scotland and a useful illustrated
guide to the characters. At the back are historical notes, notes on
the text and page by page notes in a conversational tone outlining
Hinds' decision making frame by frame. Many of our Stage 1 students
struggle through Macbeth each year and this edition will be useful
in enhancing understanding and enjoyment of the play. For visual
learners it could form a useful bridge between movie versions of the
play and the written word.
Sue Speck
Here comes a kiss by Stacey McCleary and David Cornish
Little Hare, 2015. ISBN 9781760121228
(Age: Pre-school - Yr 1) Here comes a kiss revolves around a
little girl and her younger brother as they go about their day,
giving kisses to one another and the little boy's toy. A delightful
and tender tale of sibling love and kisses, this story is written in
verse and accessible to the very youngest of children, due to the
sparse, gentle text and the accompanying simple coloured
illustrations. Cornish has used watercolours in his art works so the
colours are bright and cheerful but in no way overwhelm the story.
Each page is presented on a cream background, instead of stark
white, and the baby's stuffed toy dog makes an appearance on every
page bar the front cover. As well as the heart pictured on the chest
of the toy, hearts are liberally scattered across the backgrounds of
every page too.
This title could be used in a Kindergarten or Reception class when
introducing rhyming words or looking at family relationships. It
could also be an introduction to the names of different parts of the
body. At home, I can well imagine parents acting out the story with
their young children at bed time as it is quite a delightful tale.
Jo Schenkel
Ballet backflip by Meredith Costain
Ill. by Danielle McDonald. Ella Diaries series. Scholastic
Australia, 2015. ISBN 9781743628645
Recommended for readers from 7-9 years. Ella's diary contains her
quirky, innermost thoughts, her observations, poems, feelings - both
sad and happy, all accompanied by small action cartoons drawn in
purple and black. Ella is very expressive and informative, she loves
using dot points and lots of punctuation! She attends La Madame Fry
Ecole de Ballet - ballet school - every Wednesday afternoon and
Saturday morning with her best friend Zoe. Madame Fry announces a
special ballet concert set in an enchanted wood, the junior class is
baby bunnies. Unfortunately, there's only one special role the Fairy
Queen for the senior girls, the rest of the group is rocks, trees
and mushrooms. Dante the only boy dancer is the Fairy King. Ella
practices and practices plies and pirouettes in her bedroom, often
interrupted by her younger sister Olivia and her friend Matilda.
At school annoying Peach and her friends are impressing their
classmates with awesome flips, somersaults and moves they have
learnt at Twisters, a new gymnastics club. When Zoe decides to leave
ballet lessons and join the gymnastics club.
Meredith Costain's Ella Diaries are amusing to read, she
really understands the highs and lows a young girl experiences at
home, at school and in choosing the right sport or activity. The use
of different font styles, sizes and colours combined with different
styles of poetry and use of difficult words and made-up ones like
'exhausterating' make this an appealing junior novel.
Rhyllis Bignell
We're all Australians now by A B (Banjo) Paterson
Ill. by Mark Wilson. Angus & Robertson, 2015. ISBN 9780732296476
(Age: 8+) Recommended. World War One. ANZAC. Poetry. In his poetic
style, Banjo Paterson sent an open letter to the troops as they
fought in the war in Europe. Angus & Robertson have published
this beautifully illustrated book, setting the poem against Mark
Wilson's pictures of the war they faced. Banjo was well known in
Australia and many people learnt his poems by rote and could recite
them at will. He was revered as a poet who captured the Australian
core.
Each stanza of the poem extolling the virtues of a united Australia,
is illustrated with aspects of the war they fought and complimented
with images of people back home. So we have an image of the men
fighting their way up the Turkish hills on Gallipoli's coast, with
an image of a poster imploring recently graduated nurses to join up,
and a woman watching down on them all, while a man sits on his horse
under the Australian sun. Each image represents an aspect of war and
home, encouraging younger readers to ponder the lives led by these
people. I was struck particularly with the image of men advancing
across an open piece of land, contrasting with the women doing their
work back home, pulling along the coal trucks. And the nod to Walter
Withers, an Australian painter at the time, is wonderful, contrasting
the quiet life back home with the men packed and going off to war.
Each page is filled with things to look at and ponder, to wonder and
respond.
With the vast numbers of books about World War One published at the
moment, it is a change to see something written at the time, a poem
which underlined the feeling that Gallipoli made Australia,
Australia, that it overcame the state loyalties and divisions and
made people think of the reason for Federation only fifteen years
before. The Anzac heroism gave Australians a reason to be proud.
References to poppies, Gallipoli, Simpson and his donkey, Alec
Campbell, nurses, women back home, HMAS Sydney and wattle, amongst
others, will attract eager readers to look at the images shown and
reason why they are included.
Fran Knight
Meet Marly by Alice Pung
Our Australian girl. 1983. Ill. by Lucia Masciullo. Puffin,
2015
Recommended for readers from 8-10 years. The Our Australian girl
series celebrates the lives of young girls in historically
significant times past. Author Alice Pung draws from her own family
experiences to create the story of Marly, a young Vietnamese refugee
living in Sunshine, Melbourne, in 1983. One quarter of all the
refugees who fled the aftermath of the Vietnam War were Chinese,
many arrived by boat and had to assimilate into a totally foreign
environment.
Ten-year-old Marly's life has finally settled down at home and
school, at lunchtime she plays with friends Jessica and Kylie.
At home, Mum works sewing shirts with her friends in the back shed
and Dad is a factory worker. Marly's life changes when her Uncle
Beng, Aunty Tam and cousins Tuyet and DaWei, Vietnamese refugees
who fled to Hong Kong, arrive to live at her house. She is very
resentful, about their living in half of the lounge room, giving up
her old toys and having to take her cousins to school. Marly is
named for Marlon one of the The Jackson 5 so she plays a trick on
her girl cousin twelve-year-old Tuyet and renames her Jermaine
whilst eight year old DaWei becomes Jackie.
Marly tries to teach her cousins the Australian ways but finds it is
not easy. Friendships, family loyalties and cultural differences are
explored, as Marly is forced to learn some life lessons and truths
about her attitude. This story with the music, toys, television
shows and refugees' lifestyles, is positioned in an historically
accurate setting of the early 1980's.
Another great start to a new Our Australian girls series.
Rhyllis Bignel
The umbrella by Ingrid and Dieter Schubert
Book Island, 2015. ISBN 9780994109859
(Age: Preschool) Recommended. Wordless picture book. World view.
One blustery day the little dog finds a bright red umbrella in the
garden. It whisks him off into the sky, above the swirling leaves
and swaying trees, over his little house receding into the distance.
He flies over the clouds, looking down upon the African plains with
its herd of elephants, countless flamingo and hippos in the river,
then finds he is surrounded by a group of crocodiles, before being
whisked off into the air again, where he spies camels and desert
dwellers. Then he is floating upon the sea, using his umbrella as a
boat, and afterwards views life beneath the waves, and finds himself
in a waterspout from a passing whale. Off to an island with huge
turtles, then across a continent with majestic rainforests and
clutches of human inhabitants, until he reaches the colder climes
where he sees polar bears, penguins and seals.
With only the pictures to guide the readers, they will find
themselves transported around the world, flying from one continent
to another, recognising some of the animals and the habitats they
enjoy. Many readers will take delight in recognising the images and
want to talk about the pictures and what they mean for them, while
others will ask questions and absorb the information given. It will
be fun to look closely at the images with a group of children, using
clues to locate the continent the animals are on, perhaps using a
world map to chart the dog's journey.
For introducing geographical terms: river, ocean, mountains and so
on, this book will be an immeasurable help as it even includes
climactic conditions: storm, cyclone, wind and rain. Truly, each
picture tells a thousand stories.
Fran Knight
Prince of Afghanistan by Louis Nowra
Allen & Unwin, 2015. ISBN 9781743314821
(Age: 14+) Highly recommended. War, Afghanistan, Animals, Survival.
When dog handler, Casey, is killed in the escape after the rescue of
three kidnapped doctors in Taliban held Afghanistan, Mark is the
only survivor of the attack and is left with Casey's injured dog,
Prince. The first helicopter was able to get away with the rescued
people, but his helicopter is hit by a rocket and the drones would
have beamed back that explosion, leaving people to conclude there
were no survivors. Mark and the now deaf Prince are on their
own.
So begins an adventure like no other, heart in the mouth, gut
wrenching and action packed, the reader sees Afghanistan through the
eyes of an injured soldier trying desperately to get back to safety
through villages which may or may not be helpful. All the while he
must learn about the dog, try to remember some of the things Casey
told him about his training and work out how he can make his
instructions known to the dog.
As their relationship deepens, Mark moves through this amazing
environment, which like that in Nowra's Into the Forest, is
ever present, enveloping and at times overwhelming. Five days
trekking across mountains and plains, usually at night to avoid
being seen, jostling with goats on a high track, avoiding a pair of
Taliban on a motorbike, seeing women at the waterhole, finding water
when they can, eating raw goat, all make this place incredibly real
to the reader. Nowra does not stint in talking about the opium trade
or use of marijuana both by Mark as a young man and by the troops in
the war zone. The dependence of the village people on growing the
opium poppy is shown with sympathy, as this terrible landscape has
seen countless generations of invaders across its borders.
Based on much research into Australia's role in Afghanistan, this
story is highly suited for readers in middle secondary who crave
something more. And at a time when Australia is commemorating its
involvement in World War One, it is salutary to perhaps contemplate
Mark's father's words, Only the dead have seen the end of war
(Plato).
Fran Knight
